Development of thermal comfort models over the past years: a systematic literature review

ABSTRACT

The Predicted Mean Vote (PMV) is the most used model to estimate thermal comfort in indoor environments. However, it has some discrepancies when it is compared with data collected in field studies. Over the past years, several researchers have developed alternative models to reduce these discrepancies. This research conducted a literature review with studies published in SCOPUS between 1970 and March 2022. A total of 546 articles related to PMV were identified. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied to determine the most relevant studies for the four research questions proposed. After applying the exclusion criteria, 40 articles were included for review. The main conclusions obtained are: (i) models were developed to achieve health/well-being, productivity and energy efficiency; (ii) models have improved the prediction of thermal sensation, but still diverge from reality; (iii) climate type, environment and the group studied can be considered in the development of the models.

KEYWORDS:

• Thermal comfort
• thermal comfort models
• Predicted Mean Vote (PMV)
• indoor environmental quality (IEQ)
• thermal conditions

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This research was funded by ‘Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior’, Brazil (CAPES).